Investors with TD Waterhouse think the Chinese Year of the Rat – an animal regarded as a bringer of wealth through its shrewdness – bodes well for investment choices.

Looking East, Gartmore’s China Opportunities fund continuing to remain popular. It was the most popular fund of the year among TD Waterhouse investors in 2007, and accounts for 19% of the funds bought and sold last month.

Meanwhile, Blackrock’s ML Gold & General Account, which was the second most popular fund among TD Waterhouse investors last year, takes over the top spot in January, accounting for 32% of the funds bought by TD Waterhouse investors during the month.

Angus Rigby, chief executive of TD Waterhouse, said: “As we count down to this summer’s Beijing Olympics and according to our recent investor fund volumes, TD Waterhouse customers are increasingly looking East for their investment options.

“However, with gold prices reaching record highs in January, hitting almost US$930 per ounce at one point, it comes as no surprise that Blackrock’s ML Gold & General Account has been by far the most popular fund for our investors, accounting for almost a third all funds bought during the month.”

The majority of funds are bought and sold within a TD Waterhouse self-select ISA, which allows investors to diversify their ISA holdings so they can also be used to hold unit trusts, shares, investment trusts, gilts or bonds without being limited to one provider’s own branded funds. This also enables investors to broaden their horizons when managing their portfolio to include more exotic funds or markets they may not have previously considered.

Rigby added: “Having a diversified ISA portfolio can be the key to a successful investment strategy. Of course, any investment comes with some form of risk, but by spreading assets across a variety of different fund choices, losses from one sort of investment can be offset by gains in another.”